Signatures of 58 000 people calling for extension and increase of the R350 SRD Grant handed over to Presidency representative
At the Union Buildings, the signatures of over 58 000 in support of extending and increasing the R350 grant were handed over to a Presidency representative. The campaign echoes the demands being made by many organisations such as Black Sash that the R350 SRD grant is increased to at least the food poverty line of […]
Over 49 000 people call on the government to tax the rich to support pro-poor interventions
Ahead of Minister Tito Mboweni’s budget speech, community advocacy organisation amandla.mobi submit a campaign calling for the rich to be taxed to realise interventions that will help millions of people in Mzansi who are struggling to survive the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Supported by over 49 000 people, the campaign’s key demands are an […]
Icasa needs a shake-up
Regulators must ensure that their processes are user-friendly, functional and accessible, otherwise what’s the point?
Demand for a 13th cheque for the Gogos
Even before COVID-19, a large number of South African residents were struggling to make ends meet and that is why they were demanding that grant amounts increase to afford basic needs. At amandla.mobi, our campaigns to demand a 13th cheque for the Gogos and an increase of R500 for the Child Support Grant were signed […]
A case for Basic Income Support
The Covid-19 pandemic has had devastating financial consequences on many households in Mzansi. The cost of food continues to rise, unemployment is rising and many people are unable to generate income.
Survey Results: Which workers employers are putting workers at risk
Employers are responsible for ensuring that they provide safe working conditions for their employees by taking all necessary COVID-19 precautions.
Government Covid-19 relief efforts have failed the poor
The government’s response to COVID-19 has laid bare a number of truths that existed prior to the start of the pandemic: high levels of inequality and high levels of unemployment (currently at 30% and projected to increase to 50%).
Help save lives during this gravest of crises – zero-rate the local news sites
Mobile network operators should zero-rate local news sites during this crisis. Potentially life-saving information should be available to everyone, even if they cannot afford to pay to access it.
A proposed plan for a social pedagogy alternative in the time of a pandemic
We are educators in the post-school education sector across South Africa. We have come together in various fora over the past month to discuss principles, practices and possibilities for learning and teaching in South Africa during and after the COVID-19 Global Disaster.
Vodacom drops data prices
Vodacom took a step in the right direction when it announced that it would be dropping data prices from the 1st April and this price reduction is only the first one.
How a pandemic underscores the importance of internet access
As we have seen in different parts of the world, overcoming this pandemic will require that every sector of society step out of the ‘business as usual’ logic.
Data Must Fall timeline
From protesting outside the high court, completing ICASA’s submissions, the slashing of the out-of-bundle rates by Vodacom in October 2017, the ICASA end-user regulations implemented and the Competition Commission’s ruling on mobile network operators dropping data prices by 30% to 50%. Below is is a full timeline of the Data Must Fall Campaign.
Top-ups should have been made permanent
Amandla.mobi is disappointed that all top-ups are coming to an end as of November. The lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in job losses and put many families on the brink of hunger1. Analysis of the NIDS-CRAM data2 shows that the top-ups and the newly introduced grants were pro-poor and curbed hunger3. Over […]
South African premier of LGBTIQ film Under the Rainbow
Join Nigerian lesbian filmmaker Pamela Adie at AFDA in Braamfontein Werf on October 12, 2019, for the first ever South African public screening of her film documentary, ‘Under the Rainbow’. While there are signs of progress, such as the recent decriminalisation of homosexuality in Botswana, life for the LGBTIQ community in many African states remains […]
A NHI for the people is important and possible
*Update* Thank you to all our members and partners. Together we submitted over 170,000 public submissions calling for a NHI that works for the people. This is an important first step towards shaping the delivery of quality healthcare for all. *Note we have restructured and tweaked our submission under two key themes; accountability and resources. […]
Help Casual Workers Advice Office rebuild by donating
*Update* Thank you to all our members. We raised over R35,000 for Casual Workers Advice Office.
One of amandla .mobi’s partners, the Casual Workers Advice Office (CWAO), had their offices looted and burnt on the night of Monday 2 September [1]. This is a major blow to an organisation that has stood side by side with casual workers to fight for dignity, by providing organising support and free legal advice. Just last year they won a Constitutional Court victory against labour brokers, to ensure better wages and benefits for workers [2].Our friends at CWAO have vowed to not let this attack stop their work. But they have lost things very important for their work like computers, printers and furniture. We have worked closely with CWAO on many important campaigns and thanks to them, we’ve secured countless victories for worker’s rights. As amandla .mobi member we can make sure our friends at CWAO continue to make an impact by chipping in R20 each here: https://www.givengain.com/cc/cwao/ or follow the work of CWAO on Facebook. If all of us give as much as we can, it will go a long way. Together we can help rebuild the CWAO office and support their work against xeno/afrophobia.
Load Shedding Highlights importance of ICASA regulations
The major mobile networks have already claimed that load shedding, which they have no control over, will have a negative impact on reducing the cost of data. However, consumers should not pay the price especially with regulations in place that should be protecting them from not getting value for money this way.
Time for serious investment in old-age pension grant
Time for serious investment in old-age pension grantBy Koketso Moeti * This op-ed piece was originally published by Daily Maverick. As members of Parliament descended onto the red carpet for the annual State of the Nation Address (SONA), pensioners from the Pietermaritzburg Pensioners Forum stood outside hoping to deliver their campaign to the President. They […]
Community advocacy organisation, amandla.mobi welcomes the service charter regulations announced by ICASA
Today, communications authority ICASA released its final regulations to support bringing down the cost of communication. As an organisation that concerned primarily with issues affecting the lives of low-income Black women, our primary focus on the regulations has been on issues around mobile data in particular. Because South Africa’s network operators don’t work in good […]
amandla.mobi sets its eyes on ICASA to bring down data prices and protect consumers
Lack of affordable data will hold people back from access to critical services in this digital age, says community advocacy group amandla.mobi. amandla.mobi has welcomed proposed regulations from the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) to support bringing down the cost of data access and communication. As an organisation whose work is focused on […]
amandla.mobi supports the call for a National Strategic Plan on gender-based violence
On the 8th August amandla.mobi together with Sonke Gender Justice attempted to handover a campaign, supported by over 3, 000 people, calling for a commitment to the development and implementation of a National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence (GBV). The Minister was attending the ‘SheEO Sleepout’ on the day the campaign was to be delivered. […]
